12/14/2011

Where Marco Rubio Has A Tantrum, And Sinks In The Polls

Poor Marco Rubio. When he won his Senate race in 2010 the Republicans proclaimed that he would be their shining star. He was their new golden boy, there was even talk of a run for the VP slot, maybe even the White House.

Well, that shining star turned into a shooting star pretty quickly, one that's careening back down to earth at warp speed where mere mortals live in a reality and fact based world.

In other words, Rubio's not exactly living up to his perceived potential. He was pretty much unseen and unheard from until they dusted him off for his close up with a big speech at the Reagan library. Those of us from Florida weren't exactly surprised, after all it takes him a long time to memorize a script. Unfortunately he didn't take time enough. His speech at the Reagan library contained some misinformation about........Ronald Reagan.

After his big debut there, he got caught in that other little fact problem, this time the wrong facts involved his family history and their flight from Cuba in the 1950's. Rubio was off by three years. This time it wasn't so much that he didn't do his homework, he just thought he might "cheat" a little because it made a better story.

He was also supposedly the "Tea Party Darling" when he ran for the Senate, but after he won it seemed while he still wanted to date the Tea Party, he didn't so much want to marry them. He can't quite commit for political reasons. The winds of political change are fickle things.

We didn't see or hear much from Rubio after that either, but this week he made the news again when he joined other Republicans in the Senate yesterday to vote against the nomination of Mari Carmen Aponte as ambassador to El Salvador. Rubio did so because he doesn't like President Obama's Latin America policies, nor the State Departments policies toward Cuba. That would be policies toward Cuba today, not policies from three years ago, although this is Rubio so who knows what he's thinking?

A spokesman for Rubio said the Obama administration was playing "ethnic politics," and said the Florida senator would abandon efforts to work with the administration on Aponte's nomination.

Conant said he didn't know why the DNC was "injecting itself into serious policy discussion on issues of democracy and the Western Hemisphere.""For them to try to play ethnic politics shows that they're not serious or acting in good faith," Conant said. "We're canceling that meeting because it's clear the White House and administration is more interested in playing politics than in getting anything done."

So Rubio is taking his crib notes for that meeting and going home because the White House is playing politics because....we need an ambassador in El Salvador? The nomination which Rubio voted against, and says the White House isn't interested in getting anything done?

What isn't getting done is installing a permanent ambassador in El Salvador and it's "not getting done" becauseRubio and his Republican colleagues voted to keep that from happening.

Yes, Marco Rubio would make a dandy Vice President or (humor me here) President wouldn't he? For someone who criticizes President Obama for every move he makes, and does his best to block everything President Obama does, Rubio sure cashes in his chips pretty quickly when things don't go his way. Imagine if a VP or President Rubio had to put up with the solid wall of Republican obstruction President Obama has had to deal with since he's been in office?

Marco Rubio: Meet glass house.

Speaking of that potential VP slot, Rubio is currently tanking in the polls, so that's not looking so bright now either.

Marco Rubio's poll numbers have declined every time PPP's polled Florida this year and voters are now evenly divided on him with 40% approving and 40% disapproving.

There's not much evidence Rubio would be a game changer as Republican Vice Presidential pick next year either. Only 24% of Floridians say they'd be more likely to vote for the GOP ticket if Rubio was on it, compared to 41% who say that would actually make them less inclined to vote Republican. The numbers with independents are similar to the overall ones at 22/38.

Poor Marco Rubio. I guess he's going to be in an office somewhere pouting for a good, long time.

Comments

Where Marco Rubio Has A Tantrum, And Sinks In The Polls

Poor Marco Rubio. When he won his Senate race in 2010 the Republicans proclaimed that he would be their shining star. He was their new golden boy, there was even talk of a run for the VP slot, maybe even the White House.

Well, that shining star turned into a shooting star pretty quickly, one that's careening back down to earth at warp speed where mere mortals live in a reality and fact based world.

In other words, Rubio's not exactly living up to his perceived potential. He was pretty much unseen and unheard from until they dusted him off for his close up with a big speech at the Reagan library. Those of us from Florida weren't exactly surprised, after all it takes him a long time to memorize a script. Unfortunately he didn't take time enough. His speech at the Reagan library contained some misinformation about........Ronald Reagan.

After his big debut there, he got caught in that other little fact problem, this time the wrong facts involved his family history and their flight from Cuba in the 1950's. Rubio was off by three years. This time it wasn't so much that he didn't do his homework, he just thought he might "cheat" a little because it made a better story.

He was also supposedly the "Tea Party Darling" when he ran for the Senate, but after he won it seemed while he still wanted to date the Tea Party, he didn't so much want to marry them. He can't quite commit for political reasons. The winds of political change are fickle things.

We didn't see or hear much from Rubio after that either, but this week he made the news again when he joined other Republicans in the Senate yesterday to vote against the nomination of Mari Carmen Aponte as ambassador to El Salvador. Rubio did so because he doesn't like President Obama's Latin America policies, nor the State Departments policies toward Cuba. That would be policies toward Cuba today, not policies from three years ago, although this is Rubio so who knows what he's thinking?

A spokesman for Rubio said the Obama administration was playing "ethnic politics," and said the Florida senator would abandon efforts to work with the administration on Aponte's nomination.

Conant said he didn't know why the DNC was "injecting itself into serious policy discussion on issues of democracy and the Western Hemisphere.""For them to try to play ethnic politics shows that they're not serious or acting in good faith," Conant said. "We're canceling that meeting because it's clear the White House and administration is more interested in playing politics than in getting anything done."

So Rubio is taking his crib notes for that meeting and going home because the White House is playing politics because....we need an ambassador in El Salvador? The nomination which Rubio voted against, and says the White House isn't interested in getting anything done?

What isn't getting done is installing a permanent ambassador in El Salvador and it's "not getting done" becauseRubio and his Republican colleagues voted to keep that from happening.

Yes, Marco Rubio would make a dandy Vice President or (humor me here) President wouldn't he? For someone who criticizes President Obama for every move he makes, and does his best to block everything President Obama does, Rubio sure cashes in his chips pretty quickly when things don't go his way. Imagine if a VP or President Rubio had to put up with the solid wall of Republican obstruction President Obama has had to deal with since he's been in office?

Marco Rubio: Meet glass house.

Speaking of that potential VP slot, Rubio is currently tanking in the polls, so that's not looking so bright now either.

Marco Rubio's poll numbers have declined every time PPP's polled Florida this year and voters are now evenly divided on him with 40% approving and 40% disapproving.

There's not much evidence Rubio would be a game changer as Republican Vice Presidential pick next year either. Only 24% of Floridians say they'd be more likely to vote for the GOP ticket if Rubio was on it, compared to 41% who say that would actually make them less inclined to vote Republican. The numbers with independents are similar to the overall ones at 22/38.

Poor Marco Rubio. I guess he's going to be in an office somewhere pouting for a good, long time.